The Passing of Time
by Raya Light
Summary: Ever wonder what the reincarnated Pluto was doing when her former self stopped time at the end of R? Me, too. One-shot complete.


A/N – Greetings all. This is my first _written_ fanfic, though my sisters and I grew up telling each other stories based on characters from books, movies, and anime. I hope you enjoy it.

As everyone who comes to this site knows, I don't own any of the characters from SailorMoon. Or from Genesis Climber Mospeda, either, for that matter. I have merely borrowed them for the moment. I hope you enjoy the way they have been combined.

I always wondered, if Sailor Pluto had been sent back to the past to be reborn, where was the reincarnated Pluto when Prince Demando almost destroyed the world. This story just came to me, and for some reason, my old friends from GCM (third "season" of Robotech in the US) just decided they HAD to be in here.

I prefer Japanese names myself, but I don't know them for the GCM characters (except for Mint/Annie). And I always thought Diamond was a more appealing name than Demand, so I changed it. ^-^ And my last note: This takes place in the manga R storyline, not the anime. And now, please enjoy....

  
  


**The Passing of Time**

_Time....STOP...._  
  
Deep in an underground bunker hidden in the North American Sierra Mountains, Meioh Setsuna felt the desperate command echo and re-echo through her soul. Around her, noises ceased.  
  
"_It's come_," she thought to herself. "_It's finally come._" Deep inside, joy and excitement began to blossom. "_I'm going home. At last, I'll get to see them again!_"  
  
She turned her chair away from the large monitor console she'd been manning, and looked around the room. As she spied at her companions, a faint sense of sadness joined the joy and excitement.  
  
In the middle of the room, surrounded by the parts of two motorcycle engines, Lunk and Annie were frozen in their "Dr. Mechanic" game. Annie had just slapped down some sort of wrench down into Lunk's big open hand, her eyes glued to what he was doing so she could anticipate his next need, like any good nurse. Her worried prattle was stopped, if just for the moment. Well out of the red-headed teenager's hearing, the group of resistance fighters often speculated that Annie would soon be able to repair any engine, gun, or machine almost as well as their resident mechanical genius as long as she was allowed to talk about her problems at the same time.  
  
Leaning against the far wall of the room, Lancer was caught mid-chord change as he worked on a new song for his next concert, which he insisted would be in Crystal Tokyo's famous Sunshine Theater. He stared intently at some point by his left knee, as if he were using his eyes as lasers to write the song into the concrete floor. His long blue-purple hair was just beginning to spill over his shoulder towards his twelve-string guitar.

Beside him, his girlfriend Sera leaned her blond head back against the wall, a recording device and a clipboard with paper in her lap. Her eyes were closed, pen frozen mid-tap, as she listened intently, searching for lyrics to match the melody.  
  
Rook was frozen looking down the sights of a laser gun, pointed, oddly enough, at the exact spot that Lancer was staring at. Setsuna felt a small smile steal across her face as she noticed this little detail. Beside Rook, Rand was bent over some electrical troubleshooting equipment, attempting to diagnose a problem with another laser gun. Setsuna's smile grew bigger as she made a bet with herself. "_His eyes are on his blond partner,_" she thought, "_not on that readout. And Rook-san is just about to call him on it._"  
  
By the coffeepot, Marlene had just finished pouring a cup of thin weak American coffee for their leader, Scott, who was on guard duty out of sight at the entrance to the bunker. The last drop hovered at the edge of the pot, waiting for time to start again so it could finish it's descent.  
  
In the short six months since the Black Moon family had returned to invade Earth, these eight fighters had become friends. Somehow, they had found each other and banded together to fight off the enemy forces. With Setsuna's help, they had managed to stay free and armed. Although, they hadn't really needed much help, just a few pointers on how to fight warriors with psychic powers. Her biggest job had been to man the communications line and scanners, warning them of energy changes and enemy movements.  
  
Setsuna moved to push herself out of her chair, and realized that her legs seemed to have been replaced by noodles. "_What? What's going on? Why can't I move?_"   
  
Before fear or panic could set in, the answer floated up to her mind. "_Oh. I must be affected by the shock waves. My former self has just broken the biggest taboo. That would certainly be enough to affect me._" Feeling another spurt of sadness, she sighed and settled back down to wait. "_It shouldn't be long. Just long enough for Sailor Moon to get the two Crystals from Diamond. And for my former self to summon Diana back from the Time Gate._" Indeed, she felt the streams of time beginning to rush back in.  
  
TWANG Lancer jerked back in surprise as two strings on his guitar broke as one. Sera's eyes flew open, and she immediately turned a fearful gaze to Setsuna. She looked as if she realized that her heart had just stopped.  
  
"Rand, pay attention!" Rook cried impatiently at the exact same moment. Then, the couple jumped back, Rook squealing and Rand yelping, as the diagnostic machine threw off sparks and shorted out his gun. "Aw, man!" Rand exclaimed.  
  
Lunk and Annie looked over at the couple and sighed. Annie had just opened her mouth to make some smart comment, when the coffeepot shattered. Everyone jumped and whirled. "Marlene?"  
  
"Setsuna-sensei?" Marlene stared at Setsuna with a puzzled, uncertain look on her face. "_She knows,_" Setsuna thought with wonder. Marlene and Sera were their sensitives, though Marlene was the more powerful. They were the main reason the others had lasted so long against the psychics of the Black Moon family. Setsuna knew Marlene was good, but she hadn't realized that the girl was THAT good. "_She knows something extraordinary just happened. And that I'm somehow involved._"  
  
"It's alright, Marlene-san. The war is almost over."  
  
"What?!?" the other seven exclaimed. "What do you mean, almost over!" "What did you see Marlene?" "What happened?" "Setsuna-sensei?" "How do you know?" "It is?" Lunk, as usual, remained quiet as the others tried to talk over each other, but his questioning stare was riveted on Setsuna.  
  
She sighed, then froze. A black hole appeared in front of her, and out of it emerged a staff crowned with the Garnet Orb. Standing, she stared at it a moment, her heart leaping and pounding in her chest. Then, she reached out and gently accepted it. Around her, her companions watched in shock.  
  
"What... What is that?" Rook asked.  
  
"This... is a symbol of my office."  
  
"Office? What office? Setsuna-san, what's going on?" Lunk said quietly.

Setsuna turned her garnet eyes toward him. Her face was glowing, and her eyes looked so happy, that Annie immediately grinned and relaxed. Whatever it was, it wasn't bad.  
  
"I am Sailor Pluto," Setsuna declared. Her companions stared at her blankly, causing her to smile her slight smile. "You have heard of the legendary Sailor Senshi who guard Crystal Tokyo, right?" Mutely, they nodded. "I am like them. I was here in the US on vacation when the Black Moon family struck. I decided to stay, since I could not be of assistance there." She thought of the chaos it would have caused in the time stream if she and her former self had been in the same city. She also thought how much more she would have been affected by that final command if she had been any closer, and shuddered. "But now, I am being summoned home to my post."  
  
"But, why now?" Lancer asked. "What's changed? Why do you say the war is almost over?" "What just happened?" Sera added fiercely.  
  
Setsuna debated briefly, then told them an edited version of what had happened in Crystal Tokyo, and of Sailor Moon's journey to Nemesis. Her former self became another Senshi who shared her post at a "strategic point". Black Lady/Sailor ChibiMoon became a court child who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. She didn't even bother to explain where Sailor Moon had come from, believing that they would think she was just one of the many Senshi they hadn't heard of.  
  
"But how do you know this?" Lancer asked. "Mysterious Senshi powers," Setsuna replied with a smile.  
  
"It still doesn't explain why you say the war is almost over," Rand grumbled. Setsuna looked at him a moment, then said "Sailor Moon is the most powerful of the Senshi. In fact, only Neo-Queen Serenity is more powerful. There is no doubt that she will defeat Nemesis."  
  
"If she's so powerful, then why haven't I ever heard of her," Annie whined. Setsuna paused for a moment while her mind raced for an acceptable answer. "She doesn't like for people to be in awe of her so she keeps a very low profile."  
  
"And why hasn't she defeated Black Moon already?" Rook demanded. Setsuna sighed. "Sometimes she forgets how strong she is. It takes her a while to remember. And now, I must go."  
  
"Wait!" Marlene cried. "What about Scott? You can't leave without saying goodbye to him!" Before Setsuna could respond, Marlene dashed out of the room to get their lanky, blue haired leader. Impatiently, the Senshi of Time turned back to the monitor console, and began to type. An image of Nemesis appeared on the main screen. Five minutes later, as Scott and Marlene re-entered the room, the distant planet was swallowed by a strong white light. Everyone flinched back, shielding their eyes from the glare.   
  
"What was THAT?" Scott exclaimed. "That," Setsuna replied with satisfaction "was the end of the war. Nemesis has been defeated. All that's left is for you guys to mop up." She paused, looking at each of them as if she would imprint them into her memory. "Thank you for all you have done. And thank you for letting me help. Be sure that the King and Queen will know of your deeds. Goodbye." And in a moment, she was gone.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Pluto stood in the shadows by the Time Gate and watched with joyful amusement as her Queen and former Princess exchange words of appreciation and gratitude. "_I'm home. At last, I'm here._" Her eyes drank in the image of Sailor Moon, Neo-Queen Serenity, and Sailor ChibiMoon. As the Doors swung shut, she breathed a small sigh of relief.  
  
Neo-Queen Serenity gave a quick laugh. "Didn't think I would let them go without telling them you were all right, did you? Really, Pluto, I DO know how to keep a secret," she grinned, as lighthearted and joyful as ever.  
  
"Yes, my Queen," Pluto responded solemnly as she stepped out of the shadows. She ignored the grins on the faces of the Inners as they stood around the Queen.   
  
"Please open the Time Gate again, Pluto?" the ruler of Crystal Tokyo requested. Standing in front of the open portal, the Queen held up Pluto's Star Seed and blew gently on it. A clear bubble of Silver Crystal surrounded it as it drifted off into the mists of time. "Off you go now. Be reborn in the past, and live a normal, happy life," she whispered. The Queen and the Senshi watched until the shine of the Star Seed could no longer be seen.  
  
"Thank you, Pluto," Neo-Queen Serenity said as she turned away from the portal. She began to walk across the hall followed by her guardians, then stopped and faced Pluto once more with a wide smile. "Oh, and Setsuna-san... Welcome home." 

  


P/S – Sunshine Theater is a real theater in Tokyo, as all Sera Myu (SailorMoon Musical) fans know. ^-^ I couldn't resist.....


End file.
